Four Changes To Ulster Ravens Side

There are four changes to the Ulster Ravens team that lost to Cornish Pirates last weekend for Friday night's British & Irish Cup round 2 match against Jersey at Ravenhill (kick-off 7.30pm).

In the only change to the province's back-line, Ian Porter starts at scrum half in place of Michael Heaney who drops to the replacements bench.

In the front row, Michael Crombie starts at loosehead prop in place of Paddy McAllister and Malone's Christopher Taylor is selected at tighthead instead of Bronson Ross.

Neil McComb moves to his more familiar position in the second row with Mike McComish also switching from openside flanker to number 8. Sean Doyle comes in alongside him, wearing the number 7 jersey.

Lewis Stevenson was the stand-out performer for the Ravens in their 34-17 defeat away to the Cornish Pirates and he believes that this Friday's game is of the 'must win' variety.

"It's obviously a really important game for us (against Jersey) and it will be interesting to play against Niall (O'Connor). He will know us pretty well, just as we know him - it will bring an interesting dimension to the match," he said.

"The result against the Cornish Pirates was a really disappointing. I don't think that we did ourselves justice and we had a quality side out. This week we have to aim to put in a winning performance and get the campaign back on track."

Kick-off at Ravenhill is 7.30pm. Tickets for the game can be purchased via the Ulster Rugby website and Ticketmaster. Admission is free for Ulster Season Ticket holders.

The countdown is on to the Women's Sevens Dublin tournament in UCD on August 22-23. Anthony Eddy, IRFU Director of Rugby Sevens & Women's Rugby, previews what promises to be an exciting couple of days.

Tickets for the tournament start at 5 euro, with children free, and are available to buy here - http://www.ticketmaster.ie/Womens-Sevens-Series-tickets/artist/2134381?tm_link=artist_artistvenue_module.

Jenny Murphy talks about the progress made by the Ireland Women's Sevens team and their pool draw for the upcoming Women's Sevens Dublin tournament in UCD on August 22-23.

Tickets for the tournament start at 5 euro, with children free, and are available to buy here - http://www.ticketmaster.ie/Womens-Sevens-Series-tickets/artist/2134381?tm_link=artist_artistvenue_module.

Conor Murray and Tommy Bowe speak to Irish Rugby TV about their Rugby World Cup preparations and thank the thousands of supporters who came out to see the players at the open training session at the Sportsground.

Ireland captain Paul O'Connell gives his verdict on the team's new Rugby World Cup jersey and talks about his move to French club Toulon. Ireland's RWC 2015 range is available to pre-order now from http://shop.irishrugby.ie.

Anthony Eddy, IRFU Director of Rugby Sevens, talks about the target of a top three finish for both the Ireland Men and Women in Lisbon this weekend, as they continue on their quests for Olympic qualification.

Tom Daly, who recently captained the Ireland Men's Sevens team to the European Division C and B titles, is looking forward to playing in this weekend's Rugby Europe Olympic Repechage tournament in Lisbon, Portugal.

Ireland will host the 'Women's Sevens Dublin' at UCD on Saturday, August 22 and Sunday, August 23. Tournament director Garrett Tubridy and Ireland stars Lucy Mulhall, Jenny Murphy and Louise Galvin speak about their excitement ahead of the World Rugby Women's Sevens Series qualifier.

Coach Allen Clarke and stand-in captain Billy Holland answer questions from the media following Emerging Ireland's 45-12 victory over Georgia in the final round of their successful Tbilisi Cup campaign.

Emerging Ireland coach Allen Clarke speaks about his side's five-try 33-7 win over Uruguay in the Tbilisi Cup and the first half injury to captain Rhys Ruddock. They wrap up the tournament against hosts Georgia on Sunday.

Speaking about the floods that occurred following the Tbilisi Cup's first round, Emerging Ireland team manager Joey Miles said: "A natural event like that, a tragedy like that puts the game of rugby into perspective. We express our regrets to the Georgian people and the Georgian Union for the terrible tragedy that they had."

David O'Reilly from the IRFU Charitable Trust's Corporate Patrons Committee speaks about the new scheme which provides businesses with unique networking opportunities and provides a platform for companies to effectively activate their CSR programmes. For further information, please contact Linda Black of the Charitable Trust - telephone (01) 6473866 or email: linda.black@irfu.ie / http://www.irishrugby.ie/news/34728.php.